Wind-indicating device for practice-shooting.



C. B. WINDER. WIND INDICATING DEVICE FOR PRACTICE SHOOTING.

APPLICATICN FILED APILZQ, 1907. Y

Patented Jan. 19

ATTORNEY.

1301c}; whcm'tamay: concern:

Beiitk-nownithat I, CHARLES B. W'INDER, a citizen of-ithe-.;Un'ited States, residing at Qohun-busz-iini theicounty of Franklin and 5 State. Q;iQl1i0,vlIaVe invented a certain new and; useful Improvements in Wind-Indicatingi Devfi'ees forlPra ctice-Shooting, of which thefollowing is'a specification.

,1 My inventionwrelates to improvements in devicesfor indicating the direction and velocitiyoi'aair cu rrentsand is adapted to be used; especially in :connection with practice shooting OnaVminiatur range or in a gallevy the marksman, in his practice error cises, should be trained in allowing in his a mi for weather conditions, especially the air conditions that are prevailing at the time. In actual warfare theefiiciency of the soldier depends largely upon his ability tOLSlIIllKQ theobject aimed at, and in order to accomplish this result, he must be able 7; to;accommodatehimself to the atmospheric conditions existing at the time; if he has had a' course of training in determining weather conditions and in adjusting his firearmto such conditions, he will have gained cXperience'that will-enable him quickly to determine his proper action under a given set-of circumstances;

The object of my'improvement in the kind of-devices mentioned is to provide a ready :5 means for giving'the marksman or militiaman such training,-and the devices herein described are adapted for use either in the 5 gallery or 'ontherange. It is well known that; the apparatus used for this purpose c'o'nsists of a dial, was it is usually termed, a clock, anda flag, the former being used to indicate" the direction of a prevailing wind 40 or'currentof air, the latter being used to indicate the velocity of the same. V The ;;devices consist especially in the use of-the clock-and flag and vane in connection, so that'the'movement of the vane by the current of air will swing the hand around the face of the dial, and by inspec- ;tion, .theamarksman'can ascertain from what direction the wind is coming and with what velocity."- :If the devices are used for gallerys hooting, both the direction and velocity of'th'e wind mu'st be assumed, there being eynoi wind in reality, the desire being to accustom themarksman to various assumed conditions which might be found to exist if '55 the piiacticewei'eout' 'of'doors under normal condittionsf- I 1 Specification of Letters-Eaten. 7; i Applicaticn med Apri1 29,1907. mama-erases.

TED- STATES PATENTQOFFICE.

Z CHARLES B. WINDER, or OOLUMBUS, omo.

'winn-mmcarme DEVICE roe raacrxcncnoo rme.

v Patented- Jan. 19,- 1909.

With these and other objects in mind which will be more fully set forth in the following description and in the claims, referonce is made to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a front view of the devices showing the dial, vane, and flag; Fig. 2 is a side view showing" the arrangement of gearing for communicating the movement of the flag to the hand on the dial .face; Fig. 3

; shows devices for controlling the flag from a distance.

Referring to the drawings, 1 is a standard fixed rigidly into the base 2, the width of the base and the height of the standard being'ad'apted to be made subject to the conditions under which the same are to be used; 3 is a member mounted upon the upper end of the standard 1 and having the chamber or opening 4' therein; in this opening 4 is journaled the shaft 5 carrying adjacent one end thereof the bevel gear 6. Adjacent the other end of said shaft is mounted the han or indicator 7, which is adapted to move over the face of the dial 8, the latter being secured to the member 3 in any desirable manner. The dial contains the usual numera'ls found upon the face of the clock, numbered froml to 12 consecutively around the circle and the hand is adapted to assume any desired position upon the face of the dial, as is usual in clock construction.

In shooting practice it is customary to speak of the wind and to designate the same with reference to its direction as if it were blowing across the face of the clock dial; for instance, if the marksman be facing the dial, a wind blowing directly, across the face from left to right alongthe horizontal diameter of the circle would be called a nine oclock wind, and from the opposite direction, a three oclock wind. In other words, a nine oclock wind or a three oclock wind blows directly at a right angle across the path of travel of a projectile if the same were discharged straight at the dial. A wind blowing directly away from the marksman would be called a six oclock wind, and a wind blowing directly towards the marksman would be called a twelve oclock wind. A wind blowing fromthe direction between 3 and 6 would be spoken of ordinarily as a four or-five oolock wind, and if from a-d'irectionbetween 6 and 9,,it would be ordi-' narily spoken of as a seven or eight oclock wind. A wind blowing from other points "locity of the current of air.

on the dial would be. designated according to the point from which it blows as above indicated.

' 9 is a rod rotatably mounted in the upper portion 10 of the member\ 3, which-latter is preferably lengthened to give an extended bearing surface to the rod 9 whereby the same is firmly su ported; rod 9 at its lower end carrles the evel gear 11 adapted to mesh with the gear 6 carried by the shaft 5 the result of this connection is that a rotation set up in the rod 9 will cause a rotation of the shaft 5 through the bevel gears,

thereby turning the hand in the direction desired. Adjacent the upper end of the rod 9 is adjustably mounted a flag 12, which is provided for the purpose of indicating the velocity of the current of air. This velocity may be known from the angle at which the flagis sustained by the current of air. The greater the angle between the upper edge of the flag and the rod 9, the greater is the ve- It is readily seen that this must be so inasmuch as the Hag is lifted from its normal drooping position by the current of air, and hence the eater the velocity of the current of air, the higher the flag will be lifted, therefore the greater the angle between the. flag and the supporting rod.

Under outdoor conditions, not only would the flag indicate the velocity of the current of air but it would also showthe direction, inasmuch as the flag would be carried round to the position where it would offer least resistance to the current of air; frequently, however the position of a flag may not clearly indicate to the marksman what the direction of the prevailing wind maybe, (for instance, when the direction is slightly to one side or the other of the four cardinal points on the dial), and in such case the dial would be consulted. Mounted adjacent the upper end of the rod 9, in proximity to the position of the flag, is the vane 13; the current of air striking the vane would swing it in one direction or another very readily, whereby the rod 9 would be rotated; through the bevel gearing a movement of the hand over the face of the dial would be set up, and when the vane assumed,

direction and in its velocity. Preferably I under such conditions the flag is secured to the arm 14 which is adjustably mounted upon the rod 9 so that the arm may be lifted to any angle desired, and by means of the set screw 15 may be maintained at such angle. The sector plate 16 mounted adjacent the inner end of the flag arm 14, has indicated thereon different velocities, as 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 miles an hour and from each numeral is drawn a radial line towards the center of curvature of the sector; if the flag arm 14 be now raised so that it will form a continuation of the radial line indicated as 10 miles an hour, the angle made by the flag arm with the supporting rod 9, will repre sent the angle at which the flag would stand in a current of air blowing ten miles an hour. Ready adjustment may be made so that the flag arm will be in line With the numeral 15' or 20 or any of the other numerals provided,

in each case the thing indicated by the angle,

between the flag arm and the rod 9 being the velocity of an assumed current of air, the angle beingthat formed by a flag under normal conditions when the air is actually moving with the velocity assumed. By some practice in this matter the marksman soon becomes familiar with the various angles of the flag and can readily identify each angle with a particular velocity. Therefore, in the manipulation of his fire-arm, in order to secure results, h'emust make adjustment to accommodate his aim to the assumed con ditions, just as he would do if he were under out-door conditions. But not only is the velocity of the wind an essential fact, the direction thereof is also a necessary element for consideration in takin aim; the latter is provided for by the dial: which has been described above. In gallery work the hand on the dial may be set to indicate any assumed direction, and the flag may be swung into the assumed direction, thereby carrying the hand around to the proper point through the bevel gearing described. The assumed direction may be changed rapidly, and the rotation of the rod 9 by the-flag will ac-' curately and speedily bring the indicating hand to that. point on the dial. Thereby the marksman soon comes to associate a given direction of the flag'with a particular position of the hand upon the dial, and the lesson is learned which he can readily put into practice in his work out of doors.

In Fig. 3 is shown a construction whereby the flag and dial may be actuated at a distance therefrom, whereby the safety of the person manipulating the same is assured. Ordinarily, for indoor work, the target shown in my application No. 354,139, will be secured to the back-stop or framework, and the flag and clock will be placed in proximity thereto. To walk from the firing line. to the latter devices and position the same anew each time a new target is to be set,

not only requir s time, but also may be attended with danger, inasmuch as a number -*rgets may be located on the same frame To remove these objections, espe 7 provide the construction shown in illCll will now be de cribed.

spindle mountt rotatably at its upper and lower ends in the brackets 18 and 19; rigidly carried by said spindle is the lateral arm 20. A number of turns 21 of a cord 22 are made about the spindle 17 being held from sliding on the spindle by the catch 2.6, and the ends of the cord are then carried away to a distance from the targets; referably they may be carried to the firing .ine, so that the marksman. may, without l down his fire-arm and pick up 1nd manipulate the same to turn having one end within easy reach e marksman, or at some distance from argg'ct, ispassed through the ring 24 mounted upon the outer end of the arm 20, e other end of said cord being secured to tne arm 25, the latter being mounted at the upper end of the rod 9 in such manner as to move pivotally upwardly and downwardly, but to move rigidly with said rod 9 in the lateral direction.- If cord 23 be pulled,

it will tend to li t the flag arm 25, where upon the cord may be secured taut; this movement is for the purpose of positioning the to indicate velocity of the wind as explained above. Ordinarily, the instructor l manipulate the clock and flag, leaving the marksman free to adjust himself quickly to the new conditions indicated. thereby.

it is desired to indicate a change of the tion the "wind, the spindle 17. is manipulated by means of the cord which swings the rm 20, which Will carry with it the cord 28, passin through the ring 24, which will thereb draw after it the flag arm 25; through tie bevel gearing above descrlbed, the lateral movement of the flag arm causes the hand to pass over the face of the dial.'

T'XG- manipulation of the spindle through the cord 22 may therefore be continued until the flag has been. drawn around far enough to (411188 the handto indicate the proper numeral on the dial.

The devices just described render it possible to manipulate the flag andclock from a distance, where itis safe. and danger is thereby escaped. in 3, the mounting of the dial and the bevel gear arrangement is the same as has been pointed out above The devices herein described may be used also for out of door work on a miniature range, under which conditions the angle of the may be determined by the movement le in the'diroetion desired. Another of the current of air, and the position of the hand on the dial also determined in the same manner; it is clear also that even on the miniature outdoor range the devices may be manipulated in the manner shown in Fig It is apparent, however, that the manipulation of the flag and clock would take place ordinarily under indoor conditions. WV hen my devices are used on a miniature range-out of doors, the position of the flag may be left entirely to the air currents, or an arbitrary position may be given thereto by the marksman; the movement of the clock may also be left to the influence of the air currents. or they may be regulated arbitrarily; so that either one or both of the devices may, on the outdoor range, be left free to atmospheric influences, or may be controlled arbitrarily by the marksman or instructor at his pleasure.

It is not intended herein to set forth specific forms of construction which must be adhered to but the intention has been merely to show one form of the embodiment of my idea ;-I do not intend to restrict myself to what is specifically shown and described but desire to take advantage of all the modifications'which may be Within the scope of the appended claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: I

1. Devices for indicating the direction and velocity of an assumed current of air, comprising a dial, a hand mounted adjacent thereto, a rotatable spindle, means for actuating said spindle at a distance therefrom, a flag adapted to be moved in substantially a. horizontal plane by said spindle, connections between said flag and said hand whereby the latter is turned to indicate the direction of the assumed current of air, and means for moving said flag in a vertical plane to indicate the velocity of the wind.

2. Devices for indicating direct-ion and velocity of an assumed current of air, comprising a dial, a hand mounted adjacent thereto, a flag, connection between said flag and said hand, means-for raising or lowering said flag at a distance therefrom to indicate velocity, a rotatable spindle, connection between said spindle and said flag, and means for actuating said spindle at a distance therefrom.

In testimony whereof I afiixmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

Geo. W. RIGHTMIRE, A. BAGER. 

